Opill, the First Over-the-Counter Birth Control Pill, Is Now Available Online
The progestin-only minipill is 98% effective at preventing pregnancy when taken as directed, the manufacturer says
Perrigo Company Plc
Opill is the first birth control pill that's available without a prescription.Opill, the first-ever birth control pill that’s available without a prescription, launched online sales Monday
The pill is available for purchase right now at Opill.com and Amazon, with other outlets to follow
Opill, when used as directed, is “98% effective at preventing pregnancy”
Opill, the first birth-control pill you can buy without a prescription, is available to order online today.
Right now, it's only available at Opill.com and Amazon; a one-month pack of 28 pills is $19.99, a three-month pack of 84 pills retails for $49.99, and at Opill’s website you can purchase a 6-month pack of 168 pills for $89.99.
A daily contraceptive from the manufacturer Perrigo, Opill is a “progestin-only birth control pill” — which is sometimes called a “minipill,” according to the company's website.
As the Mayo Clinic explains, a minipill “thickens cervical mucus and thins the lining of the uterus. These prevent sperm from reaching the egg and a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb.” Combination pills that contain progestin and estrogen work by preventing someone from ovulating, the Mayo Clinic explains. However, with the mini-pill, about half the people taking it still ovulate.
Perrigo Company Plc
Opill, the first oral contraceptive available without a prescription, has launched online sales.Opill, when used as directed, is “98% effective at preventing pregnancy,” the website explains.
“Opill will be available at CVS.com and through the CVS Pharmacy app in late March,” spokesperson Matt Blanchette wrote to CNN an email. “In early April more than 7,500 CVS Pharmacy stores will offer Opill and for added privacy and convenience, customers will be able to choose same-day delivery or buy online and pick-up in store.”
The outlet adds that Walgreens will also offer Opill, once it receives its shipment of the product.
Opill is a daily contraceptive — and not an emergency contraceptive, commonly known by the brand name Plan B.
While Plan B is an oral pill that can be taken within 72 hours after unprotected sex to prevent pregnancy, Opill must be taken every day at the same time to prevent pregnancy. According to the product information, it takes two days to start becoming effective.
Related: Hailey Bieber Says Taking Birth Control as a Migraine Sufferer Contributed to Her Mini-Stroke
According to the CDC, “75% of pregnancies were unintended among teens aged 15 to 19 years.”
"At Perrigo, we've been working to make lives better through trusted health and wellness solutions that are accessible to all for more than 130 years and that purpose is especially important when we think about reproductive health," Triona Schmelter, Perrigo Executive Vice President & President, Consumer Self-Care Americas, said in a press release.
"We champion the right of women and people to determine their own sexual health journey and the availability of Opill over-the-counter is truly a historic moment of which our entire organization can be proud."
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